Guardians of the Vessel
by Murphy8370
Summary: Once a century the Vessel returns to earth to check on the state of humanity it is the job of Brenna and her seven warriors to return it before 7 days Can Sam and Dean help her before time runs out, or will Brenna forfeit her life and the Vessel secrets?


Once every century the vessel is removed from the temple, tradition dictates that the vessel needs to check on the state of humanity, the warden must chose seven warriors to guard the vessel in the journey. Today the warden's choice is heartbreaking.

"Chantelle, is there no one else?" The Warden asked the high priestess.

"No, milady, the prophecy has spoken of this day. The journey was foretold in the leaves, the bones and the waters. The Sentinel must be Brenna."

"Is Brenna ready?"

"No, milady, but that is the purpose of the journey."

"I understand," The Warden sighed and entered the waters of meditation, rose petals swirl around her as she lowered herself onto the marble seat.

Linnea, the current Warden, had made her choices of warriors to accompany her daughter on her quest, the vessel must leave the temple and be in this time of man, this awful world to test its humanity for seven days and nights. Should Brenna fail her quest, the secrets hidden within the vessel would be released for 14 years, the first seven to destroy and the last seven to cleanse to birth a new race. The vessel itself would return to the current Warden to be reborn and returned to its rightful place within the temple. If the warriors should fail, in the end it would be Brenna who would forfeit her life.

Chantelle had chosen two warriors from the world of men to join Brenna leaving 4 chosen guardians from the prophecy, to help these young warriors Chantelle had also provided them with the 7 weapons of Virtue. These weapons would only enhance they're natural powers and assist in the great battle to come. Chantelle had chosen the Brothers Winchester, who were even now unknowingly entering the labyrinth, following a child who was following pan into the maze…

The black Chevy Impala rumbled around the corner and skidded to a halt in front of the maze, a red cape fluttered in the breeze, hooked onto a overhanging branch, both boys knew it belonged to Maya, the young girl they had been searching for.

"Shit…" Dean grumbled. "…Why is it always the dark forest?"

"Atleast she left a trail." Sam answered.

Dean plucked the cape from the branch.

"Looks like Little Red Riding Hood." Dean wiggled his eyebrows.

"Only you could turn a fairy tale into an X-rated movie."

"I have more class than that!" Dean exclaimed.

"Really?" Sam sounded unconvinced.

"No." Sam rolled his eyes.

Both boys stare at the maze, massive green hedges loom and arch towards the almost pitch-black sky, a strange fog rolls out of the entrance.

"Something fishy is going on." Dean says, his brows making a v as he frowns.

The boys enter the maze hesitantly, guns drawn and bodies tensed, soon after they hear a strange groaning sound and the ground beneath them begins to quake. Unprepared for the sudden shift the boy are knocked the ground in what seems to them an earthquake but what is really a quantum shift as they pass through the veil of time. Sam is first to recover when the everything settles and stands, running as the opening of the maze turns into a solid granite wall.

"Dammit!" Sam shouted.

"What the hell is going on?" Dean asked, getting to his feet.

"Somehow I don't think we're in Kansas anymore."

"Got that." Dean answered, looking around. "Now what?"

"I don't see a way out so we'll need to move."

"Yeah, but where?"

The path is split before them, to the left of them the corridor ends at a left turn while to the right the corridor ends at the right turn, Sam sighs _It just couldn't be easy could it. _His eyes stray back to the wall, Sam blinks. As if by magic a shield had appeared in the center of the wall, a blue aura surrounding it. Dean reaches out to touch the shield but it shies away from him and into Sam's hands.

"Dude! What's with that?"

"Dunno." Sam says, startled.

Sam looked at the shield, all around the outside of the shield was script as well as symbols, Dean traces each symbol and squints in the darkness.

"Looks like spells, but I don't know what the one means."

Sam squints as well. "Valor."

"Shield of Valor? Way to go Sammy!" Dean hits him on the back.

"Sounds like something you'd need in D&D."

"D&D?" Dean asks.

"Never mind."

Dean shrugged and watched as Sam walked around in circles his head bent as if looking for something.

"What's wrong?"

"Did you notice that our guns are gone?"

"What?" Dean frowned and reached for his waistband, nothing was tucked into the back of his jeans. "Where did they go?"

"I thought that we may have dropped them when the earthquake started but no, they're not even on the ground."

"Are you sure?"

"Yea, our flashlights are gone too."

Dean followed Sam around, searching the inky darkness and thick fog for the objects they had dropped when Dean heard a clink on the ground as if he had kicked a metal object.

"What was that?"

"Don't know."

Dean lowered himself onto his haunches and searched the fog with his hand when suddenly his hand closed around a small metal object in the fog, he lifted his hand and saw that it was a key.

"What is it?"

"A key?"

"That's weird, where'd it come from?"

"Dunno, but there's more of the script."

Sam took the key, but dropped it as soon as he touched it. "What's wrong?"

"It burned me!"

"What do you mean it burned you?"

"I touched it and it burned me!"

Dean knelt and picked it up, the metal was cold in his hands. "A cold key burned you?"

"I'm telling you! It burned me!"

"Whatever."

Dean held out his palm for Sam to see the key, he peered at it, still cautious of the small object.

"It says Knowledge."

"Key of Knowledge, swell." Dean pocketed the key.

Sam slung his shield around his shoulder and stepped in front of Dean.

"You have your weapons." Linnea whispered.

Both boys stopped and looked around. The had heard the whisper through the wind.

Brenna, Kiera, Regan and Morgan woke up in separate parts of the maze after having also experienced the shift in time and space, Brenna jumped to her feet and looked around. Immediately she recognized the maze around her, it had been a long time since she had been here but she knew it like it was yesterday, it still held the eerie feeling it used to.

"What the hell?" she said to herself.

She was surprised to see that instead of the pajamas she had put on earlier that night when she went to bed that she was in her hunting clothes with her quiver and bow strapped to her back. It made no sense, she should be at home sleeping, not in Pan's Labyrinth but she had a feeling it had something to do with her Mother and Chantelle.

Unfortunately if this had anything to do with them it meant that there was no getting out of it until the quest was complete, or what they considered complete. Somewhere out in front of her she heard the low murmur of voices, she considered the consequences of following them when she heard a familiar one, Regan and her twin sister Morgana, also Guardians.

"Regan!" she called, hoping that maybe they could hear her.

"Brenna?" one of them called.

"Where are you?"

"Don't know, I think we're in the center."

"Don't move, just keep talking I'm coming."

Brenna followed the voices, running around corners and avoiding dead-ends whenever she could until eventually she had arrived in the center of the maze where six other people stood. She recognized the center of the maze almost immediately, recognized the court where four entrances stood along with a closed door.

"Anyone tried to door?" she said, trying to catch her breathe.

"Locked." Sam said, stilling staring at the door.

"Anyone got a key?" Dean said, smirking. Sam gave him a look.

"I'm Brenna."

"Dean and this is my brother, Sammy."

"Sam."

The other women also introduced themselves, nodding at the boys since all the others knew who they were.

"Anyone know why we're here?" Dean asked the beautiful women who were diminutive except for the twins, Regan and Morgana, who were amazon in stature.

"Brenna…." Ariana said in awe. "…look at the door."

Π α ν δ ο ρ α, was carved above the door.

"Oh." All girls knelt, their heads bowed.

"What?" Sam and Dean demanded in unison.

Brenna stands and points at the door.

"Pandora."

"Pandora? The chick with the box of horrors?"

Ariana draws her sword and advances upon Dean, immediately Sam steps out in front of her the shield held out in front of them.

"Was it something I said?"

Ariana stops as soon as she sees the shield.

"Ah, you are among the chosen."

TBC!


End file.
